My boyfriend introduced me to the sport 4 years ago, and at first I got into it without any expectations; at the beginning, progress came quickly, but soon enough, I felt completely overwhelmed, leaving the gym exhausted and frustrated.
Honestly, I don’t think I’ll ever go beyond V3s as my baseline anymore because it’s like being tone deaf in music: I simply lack spatial intuition, and I am unable to form mental images in my head. I end up wasting way too much energy on a single movement while some make it look effortless. At V3s and below, the holds are generally good enough to figure out the movements directly on the wall, but above V3, the hesitation costs me way too much energy, and I freeze because I don’t have that instant spatial map. Getting stronger helped me hang onto worse holds longer, but I still felt something was off.
Even though the technique classes were top-notch and the teachers were amazing, I just couldn’t translate that theory into motion on harder routes. Sometimes I can do harder routes, but only if the route is super straightforward to read—meaning no awkward positioning or delicate balance, at least, on the routes in my local gyms. On overhangs, unless the holds are big jugs, I quickly feel completely disoriented and dizzy.
In outdoor climbing, the impact is bigger because the holds are hidden and subtle; that’s already a challenge for any climber, but for me, it is simply too much. My difficulties with generalization mean that I’m unable to apply anchor theory in a natural environment, and we chose to stop climbing outdoors because I cannot belay my partner safely if the ground isn’t flat, as I completely lose my balance.
Still, I absolutely love climbing indoors—especially lead climbing, which is my favourite discipline. And bouldering has been more fun ever since.
I deeply admire those who train hard, push their limits, and manage to go far in this sport, but high-level climbing is just not meant for me, and that’s okay.
Rosalie
I am Rosalie, and I am 30 years old from Canada.
